Washington – The U.S. State Department announced on Thursday that Cherrie Daniels has been tapped to be its Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues. Founded in 1999, the Office of the Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues “develops and implements U.S. policy to return Holocaust-era assets to their rightful owners, secure compensation for Nazi-era wrongs, and ensure […]

Orlando – A Florida man who threatened to shoot up a local synagogue and has said publicly that he hates Jews was apprehended on Friday by the FBI. Hanson Larkin, 25, was in an Orlando federal court the same day, charged with making threats through interstate communication to, according to police, a Jewish man that […]

California – California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill that protects the right of Jewish residents to place a mezuzah on their doorposts, including dormitory rooms and apartments. Senate Bill 652, known as the “Mezuzah Bill,” mandates that property owners “shall not enforce or adopt a restrictive covenant or any other restriction that […]

Lakewood – Rabbi Shlomo Gissinger of Lakewood, NJ passed away today. Rabbi Gissinger was the Rav of Khal Zichron Yaakov, one of the largest congregations in Lakewood. Rabbi Gissinger was well known far beyond Lakewood, as a leader and Posek. He was involved in numerous organizations in the community. Rabbi Gissinger had fallen ill over […]

Sweden – The popular video blogger PewDiePie announced a donation of $50,000 to the Anti-Defamation League, then rescinded it a day later after fan feedback. PewDiePie, whose name is Felix Kjellberg of Sweden, made the announcement of the donation on Wednesday during an online celebration of surpassing 100 million subscribers, saying he wanted to get […]

Duluth – Firefighters managed to salvage Torah scrolls from a 120-year-old synagogue in Duluth, Minn., before an overnight fire on Monday that started in a storage room wound up destroying the building. Leaders of Adas Israel Congregation, Duluth’s oldest-surviving Modern Orthodox Jewish synagogue, guided firefighters as they removed artifacts from the basement of the synagogue, […]

Brooklyn – The Chassidic Satmar community in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., is tired of tourists treating them like “animals” in a zoo by flocking to their communities to take pictures of them, the New York Post reported. “People snap pictures of you like you’re on some sort of display—like you’re in a zoo. […]